Keene's bats rough up Spaulding

Thursday

Apr 29, 2010 at 3:15 AM

By Mike Whaleymwhaleyfosters.com

ROCHESTER — The way Keene High School was hitting the ball and leaving runners on base, you had to figure sooner or later a big inning was in store. Sure enough in the fifth, the visiting Blackbird exploded for five runs after there were two outs to take the lead en route to a 9-5 Class L win over Spaulding.

Spaulding did not hit the ball well and standout sophomore Bobby Dow did not have his best stuff. Yet after four innings, the Red Raiders led 3-2. Keene, the defending Class L champ, had collected seven hits and left eight runners on base over the first four innings. That charity did not extend into the fifth.

Dow looked like he might get out of the fifth after Keene started the frame with runners on third and first and no out. Spaulding catcher Tyler Poisson threw out Dan Richards stealing and a Dow strikeout after a walk to Colby Wilkinson made it seem possible with two outs. But No. 9 hitter Alec Ingram belted a run-scoring single to tie the score at 3-all. Tanner Luopa put the Blackbirds up 4-3 with an RBI base hit and Ethan Daisy's run-scoring double made it 5-3 and signaled the end of Dow's mound work for the day. Nick Nelson's two-run double widened the lead to four, 7-3, off Dow's replacement, Aaron Snow.

"We didn't see anything special today and we only got (five) hits," Spaulding coach Jerry Lachance said. "They hit the ball well. You can't take that away from them. We weren't too sharp, and Bobby (Dow) wasn't as close to being as sharp as he has been. His control was the problem."

Spaulding cut the lead to 7-5 in the bottom of the frame on a two-out bad-bounce single past first base by Tyler Thurber, scoring Kory Ferullo (hit by pitch) and Poisson (error).

After a scoreless sixth, Keene (3-4) plated two more runs in the seventh, aided by two Spaulding errors and a two-run double by Swingle.

Ferullo led off the Spaulding (2-3) seventh with a single to right, but was stranded there as Keene reliever Dan Brantley retired the next three batters on a strikeout, groundout and a line-out.

"That's been our story so far," said Keene coach Tom Fowler, who lost 11 players, including three key pitchers, from a year ago. "We've been trying to scratch to get those runs across. We're a relatively inexperienced team. ... We still know how to swing the bat. We've always swung the bat pretty well."

The Red Raiders built their 3-2 lead through four on very little offense, while holding Keene at bay.

The Blackbirds scored a run in the top of the first on Swingle's RBI single. Spaulding answered with two in the bottom as Dow's infield grounder and Thurber's sac fly each plated a run to make it 2-1.

Keene tied it up in the second on Luopa's run-scoring base hit, while Spaulding came back to reclaim the lead in the bottom half on Matt Grenier's RBI hit to left-center. Grenier, however, was thrown out at second base trying to stretch it to end the inning.

It was scoreless in the third and fourth, and then Keene took the lead for good in the fifth.

"He fatigued pretty quick," said Poisson of Dow's fifth inning. "They had a lot of long at-bats, a lot of long pitch at-bats. I don't think I called my best game. I should have mixed it up a little bit. They were right on that first-pitch fastball."

Dow pitched into the fifth, allowing seven runs on 11 hits. He walked four and struck out four. Nick Fennuccio was the winner for Keene, working four innings, allowing four runs (two earned) on three hits. He walked and struck out one and hit three batters.

Thurber led Spaulding offensively, going 1 for 2 with three RBIs, while Ferullo was 1 for 2 with two runs scored. Luopa and Nick Vita had three hits each to lead Keene's 15-hit attack.

n n n

Spaulding lost at Trinity Friday, 4-0.

Chris Tilton started and took the loss for the Red Raiders. He went five innings, allowed four runs (two earned) on three hits and five walks. He struck out three. Bobby Dow and Aaron Snow worked the sixth inning.

Tyler Thurber had two of Spaulding's six hits. Corey Michel had a double.

On April 21, Spaulding beat Salem, 6-2, behind the pitching and hitting of Matt Grenier.

Grenier allowed three hits in six innings and had a two-run single. Tilton had three hits and Dow added two.

Never miss a story

Choose the plan that's right for you.
Digital access or digital and print delivery.